Etc and ect

[sesquipedalian]

For the umpteenth time this morning, I have read a thread where a poster uses “ect” instead of “etc”. Would these people actually say “ec cetera” IRL? Do they not know that “etc” is an abbreviation of et cetera? I never saw this until I came onto Mumsnet, and I just find it….a bit odd. I must be getting old!

People do say “icksetra” and I’m sure most people don’t know it stands for et cetera.
I find it odd too, and it grates, but it’s a very common error and people on here react very badly to being corrected, even extremely politely.

Nobody on here likes being corrected about anything. Etc is only the top of the proverbial iceberg 🤣

where are all these threads you’ve come across op?

As I've posted before, I thought it was ect as a child because I thought the t was the t in cetera rather than the t in et.

I don't think this is such a crazy error, and it's been around forever. Definitely not just a MN thing.

I often, deliberately, write 'et cetera', so that it can be seen in full. Once there was a thread, maybe on 'Chat', when a foreigner asked about it, having noticed the 'ect' as well as the 'etc'.
This is a coincidence. I am currently listening to a CD of 'Pride and Prejudice', read by Rosamund Pike. I like Rosamund Pike. I want to carry on liking her and not finding fault with her, but this morning I swear she said ' ec setra'. 😃

If they knew what ect stood for, and of course, how they do it I don't think they would confuse the two words etcetera with ect (electro convulsive therapy).

Have a look on You tube. It's worse than the cattle prod.

I've had so many good actors ruined for me by bad audio book-reading.

Off the top of my head: Carey Mulligan, Gemma Whelan... all mispronunciations that a director should have caught (or weird over-enunciation).

Every time I see 'ect' instead of 'etc' I think 'there is a person who needs to read more.'

People just don't read, so they never see it written correctly. They copy what they see written on forums by other people who don't read, and so it perpetuates.

Molesworth fans, perhaps.

I type etc. but I say, "eck-cetra". No idea why; not very posh South London upbringing, probably!

Drives me potty too! 3rd in my list next to lickle and ark-sc

@ whichfan -

There are any number on these pages - the post that prompted this thread was on AIBU (I don’t want to be mean and cite the thread) but I’ve noticed it increasingly on various Mumsnet pages, in both original posts and comments, and today was just one too many!

As someone who’s had ect (as in electroconvulsive therapy) I don’t agree that it’s worse than the cattle prod. My experience has been of hugely compassionate supportive staff, an entirely pain free procedure and having felt an awful lot better afterwards.

But it does make me think twice every time I see someone write ect rather than etc!

Lots of people say 'ec-setra' - I grew up in a new town in Essex, and it was particularly prevalent there. A regional thing, maybe.

I find that when I'm on forums that are more dominated by Americans, that just about everybody there uses ect.

No idea why that is. Perhaps they think the abbreviation is et cetera rather than et cetera?

Maybe we should try to revive writing it as "&c."

(Did you all know that the "&" is an "e" and a "t" written on top of each other?)

Same here.

thank you op, this has irritated me for years

Tip not top 😂

It really fires me up when I see ect instead of etc. Etcetera FFS !!!!!!!!

I think almost everyone without perfect diction says 'eckcetera', or that's how it sounds. But that should have no bearing on how it is written, after all lots of words are pronounced differently to how they are written, and it doesn't affect how we spell them. Nobody writes 'ruff seas' or 'wounded nee.'

@MoralOrLegal

Maybe we should try to revive writing it as "&c."

Damn! I was just going to say that myself!

I assume you don't read on any other social media, ect is everywhere, it's certainly not a mumsnet only mistake

@Vroomfondleswaistcoat

Nobody writes 'ruff seas' or 'wounded nee.'

Wounded nee, where I berried my hart? I've seen much worse on here, let alone in 'real life'. Would of, could of, should of, had of, etc. You actually hear people say 'of' instead of 'have', e.g. in TV news interviews.

This is very true. I was forgetting the travesty that is 'I would of...'